Confluence Investment Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in Mastercard Incorporated $MA

Confluence Investment Management LLC cut its position in Mastercard Incorporated (NYSE:MA) by 2.8% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 161,975 shares of the credit services provider’s stock after selling 4,670 shares during the period. Confluence Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Mastercard were worth $92,133,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. ORG Partners LLC lifted its stake in Mastercard by 73.2% during the 2nd quarter. ORG Partners LLC now owns 698 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $394,000 after acquiring an additional 295 shares in the last quarter. Curio Wealth LLC lifted its position in shares of Mastercard by 22,400.0% during the second quarter. Curio Wealth LLC now owns 225 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $126,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Mastercard by 1.2% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 78,475,807 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $44,098,695,000 after purchasing an additional 931,132 shares during the period. Wheelhouse Advisory Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Mastercard by 4.4% in the second quarter. Wheelhouse Advisory Group LLC now owns 1,336 shares of the credit services provider’s stock valued at $751,000 after purchasing an additional 56 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sarasin & Partners LLP increased its stake in Mastercard by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 727,985 shares of the credit services provider’s stock worth $413,597,000 after buying an additional 20,686 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 97.28% of the company’s stock.

Mastercard Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE MA opened at $575.88 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $554.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $565.77. The company has a market capitalization of $517.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.87. Mastercard Incorporated has a 1 year low of $465.59 and a 1 year high of $601.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.40, a current ratio of 1.12 and a quick ratio of 1.12.

Mastercard (NYSE:MA) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 30th. The credit services provider reported $4.38 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.31 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $8.60 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.53 billion. Mastercard had a return on equity of 202.03% and a net margin of 45.28%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 16.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $3.89 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Mastercard Incorporated will post 15.91 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Mastercard Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, February 9th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 9th will be given a dividend of $0.87 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, January 9th. This represents a $3.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.6%. This is a boost from Mastercard’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. Mastercard’s payout ratio is presently 19.44%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on MA. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Mastercard from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, December 14th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Mastercard from $645.00 to $654.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $713.00 target price on shares of Mastercard in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley set a $665.00 price target on Mastercard and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 31st. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Mastercard from $669.00 to $660.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 31st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twenty-one have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $657.48.

Mastercard News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Mastercard this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Major processor Fiserv will adopt Mastercard’s Agent Pay Acceptance Framework, positioning Fiserv as one of the first to scale “agentic commerce” (AI-driven payment agents). This could broaden acceptance channels and drive additional volume/processing revenue for Mastercard. Fiserv and Mastercard Partner to Advance Trusted Agentic Commerce For Merchants
• Positive Sentiment: Mastercard expanded its lending ecosystem via a strategic partnership with LoanPro to launch “Loan on Card,” enabling lenders to issue loans delivered through card rails and virtual cards — a potential new use case that can increase transaction volumes and interchange revenue. Mastercard Partners with LoanPro to Offer Loan on Card
• Positive Sentiment: FAB (First Abu Dhabi Bank) and Mastercard launched mobile-first virtual corporate cards in the UAE, supporting regional expansion of Mastercard’s commercial payments products and cross-border adoption. FAB and Mastercard transform UAE business payments
• Neutral Sentiment: Brokerage consensus remains a “Buy” on MA, reinforcing analyst-backed expectations for growth and providing support for the stock’s multiple. Mastercard Given Consensus Recommendation of Buy
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry coverage and comparisons continue (e.g., a recent survey/comparison piece vs. peers), useful for investors benchmarking valuation and growth prospects. Financial Survey: Mastercard vs. RB Global
• Negative Sentiment: Visa and Mastercard agreed to a $167.5M settlement in a long-running ATM fee lawsuit. While modest relative to Mastercard’s market cap, the settlement is a reminder of regulatory and litigation risk in the payments industry. Visa and Mastercard Settle ATM Fee Lawsuit for $167 Million
• Negative Sentiment: Ongoing consumer class-action headlines (articles noting potential ATM refunds to consumers) keep legal/liability headlines in the news, which can pressure sentiment when combined with other regulatory developments. Used an ATM since 2007? Visa and Mastercard may owe you cash

Mastercard Profile

Mastercard Incorporated is a global payments technology company that operates a network connecting consumers, financial institutions, merchants, governments and businesses in more than 200 countries and territories. The company facilitates electronic payments and transaction processing for credit, debit and prepaid card products carrying the Mastercard brand, while also providing a range of payment-related services to issuers, acquirers and merchants. Its technology and network enable authorization, clearing and settlement of payments and support a broad set of use cases including point-of-sale, e-commerce and mobile payments.

Beyond core transaction processing, Mastercard offers a suite of value-added services such as fraud and risk management, identity and authentication tools, tokenization and digital wallet support, cross-border and commercial payment solutions, and data analytics and consulting services for merchants and financial partners.